We are proud to announce that MB Legal has authored the exclusive Armenia chapter of the Chambers and Partners Dispute Resolution 2026 Global Practice Guide. Prepared by our team – Mesrop Manukyan, Maria Petrosyan, Grigor Grigoryan, and Anahit Sargsyan – the chapter provides an authoritative, practitioner-focused analysis of how commercial disputes are resolved in Armenia today, and where the system is heading.
Chambers and Partners Global Practice Guides are among the most widely used international references for legal practitioners, in-house counsel, and businesses navigating unfamiliar jurisdictions. Being selected to write a country’s chapter reflects recognition of a firm’s depth of expertise in that field. For anyone weighing how to structure, manage, or resolve a dispute connected to Armenia, the chapter is designed to be a practical first port of call.
What the chapter covers
The guide offers a comprehensive map of the Armenian dispute resolution landscape, spanning the full lifecycle of a commercial dispute:
- Litigation — Armenia’s three-tier court system (First Instance Courts, Courts of Appeal, and the Court of Cassation), specialised courts such as the Bankruptcy Court and the Anti-Corruption Court, limitation periods, the stages of proceedings, interim and final relief, and how damages are assessed.
- Arbitration — a modern framework based on the UNCITRAL Model Law, the leading arbitral institutions, the courts’ consistent pro-arbitration stance, and the narrow grounds on which awards can be challenged.
- Mediation and other ADR — the professionalised, licensed mediation regime, where mediation is mandatory, and the financial and procedural incentives that reward early settlement.
- Enforcement — recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards, including Armenia’s position under the New York Convention.
- Evidence, costs, interim remedies, class actions, and the emerging role of artificial intelligence in the justice system.
If your business is facing (or seeking to prevent) a dispute connected to Armenia, our dispute resolution team is available to help.
Key developments shaping disputes in Armenia
A mandatory, fully electronic justice system
The most significant shift defining the Armenian legal environment is the move to a comprehensive electronic justice system. Filing of claims, submission of evidence, and judicial notifications now run through a single mandatory digital platform for legal entities, advocates, and other professional participants. Critically, a judicial act is deemed legally received a set number of working days after it becomes available in a user’s digital portal — which means missing a notification can cost a party its right to appeal. This has created a new standard of “digital vigilance”: the responsibility to monitor the portal consistently now rests squarely on the practitioner.
Institutionalised arbitration and mediation
Armenia has moved from scepticism toward non-state justice to actively institutionalising it. Arbitration operates under a framework aligned with the UNCITRAL Model Law, and because Armenia is a party to the New York Convention, awards rendered in Armenia are enforceable across more than 160 jurisdictions. A notable efficiency: for smaller claims, permanent arbitral institutions can send awards directly to the enforcement service electronically, bypassing the need for a separate court writ. Mediation, meanwhile, is now a regulated profession with strict confidentiality protections and concrete incentives — including partial refunds of court fees — for parties who settle.
Maturing corporate and shareholder litigation
Corporate disputes are increasingly handled through specialised procedures, and minority shareholders now have a clearer route to bring derivative actions on behalf of a company. This has meaningfully shifted accountability within Armenian boards toward fiduciary duties and the protection of long-term company assets.
A human-in-the-loop approach to AI
While law firms are adopting AI tools for research and document review, and the courts use automated systems for the random allocation of cases, Armenia’s system remains committed to the principle that final decision-making rests with human judges and arbitrators.
Why this matters for international businesses
For foreign investors and their counsel, the chapter is written with cross-border concerns in mind: how Armenian courts handle foreign governing law, the language of proceedings, the availability of interim relief in support of arbitration (including arbitration seated abroad), and the practical timelines for recognising and enforcing foreign judgments and awards. The overarching direction of travel — digital, expert-led, and ADR-friendly — is part of Armenia’s broader strategy to attract high-value foreign direct investment.
Read the full chapter
The exclusive Armenia chapter of the Chambers and Partners Dispute Resolution 2026 Global Practice Guide is available to read on the Chambers Practice Guides website.
